Meet our new team members!
This summer, we gained 3 new members of staff. As a small charity, this is a huge step forward for us – and we now have a staff team of 7! The addition of new skills and expertise will help us develop and progress our restoration projects across the catchment.
Meet our new team members:
Karis Hodgson – Field Ecologist
Karis is the field ecologist for Calder Rivers Trust and joined in 2023. Following her
BSc (Hons) Ecology degree at Aberystwyth University, Karis has worked for several
conservation charities across the UK and brings experience of environmental
education, species recovery and translocations as well as practical habitat
management and people engagement across large, protected landscapes.
As Calder Rivers Trust’s Field Ecologist, Karis collects data through a range of
surveys and monitoring schemes, this includes habitat surveys and condition
assessments, invertebrate kick sampling in the rivers and their tributaries, and
walkover surveys looking for natural flood management opportunities across the
catchment.
Adam Thorne – Fluvial Geomorphologist
Adam is the Fluvial Geomorphologist at Calder Rivers Trust, joining in 2023, examining the science behind river channel processes and associated landforms. Having recently completed an MSc at the University of Leeds in River Basin Dynamics and Management with GIS, further developing his understanding of water research, Adam looks forward to building on this experience and applying it to projects at the Trust.
Adam is working on Connecting the Calder, a catchment wide project, identifying
opportunities for river restoration across Calderdale, Kirklees and Wakefield. This involves investigating the effects of in-stream physical modifications, in particular, weirs and their impacts on watercourses, with the aim to remove / modify these structures to enable channel reconnection and a more natural regime.
‘I’m really enjoying been part of the Calder Rivers team and working alongside other like-minded individuals who want to make a real difference on the Calder, as well as develop my professional career and skills in an industry l feel a deep connection with’.
Rachel Kipling – Project Manager
Rachel joined as Project Manager at the Calder Rivers Trust Team in 2023. Having spent the best part of 20 years working across a range of roles at the Environment Agency and across the Aire and Calder Catchments, Rachel brings experience of waste and water regulation, communications and correspondence, river and catchment knowledge and environmental project management. Rachel worked with many of our catchment partners and the CaBA ‘Catchment Based Approach’ network for 7 years as the Catchment Coordinator for the Aire and Calder at the EA.
‘I am really excited to join Calder Rivers Trust and work with such a committed team to deliver river and catchment restoration along the Calder, Colne and Holme.’
